In the Towne called “Meanness”

[This work is currently being written, suggestions are welcome.]

There was a man from a distant city, he was traveling on his way to the Celestial City, and he came upon the Towne of “Meanness”, in the middle of a concrete jungle. There was hardly any trees, or lawns, or bushes, or flowers, or living plants anywhere in this city. The name fit the city to a tee.

Walking down the street he witnessed a hardened people. Bikers. Pimps and Prostitutes. Drug Dealers. Gang members. Liquor Stores. Porn Shops. Bars with Girlie Shows. And Fast Food shops. They all had a similar air, and a similar smell. Though some were young and some were old, all the people had a grayish tint to their skin.

This Stranger to this city, stood out like a sore thumb. His face seemed to glow in comparison to the local talent. He was wearing a long almond colored robe,  that broke upon the arch of his sandals. He had dark  black hair with streaks of bright white in his sideburns, and shafts of gray and white in his beard, in his shoulder length cut. He could have easily been mistaken for an Arab Moslem. This Stranger was expecting something interesting to happen, and he was not disappointed.

He noticed a man who looked like he was in charge. Turns out he was the leader of the gang that was running all the street business. This man was leaning back on barstool type chair with a high back. He was on the other side of the street, surrounded by a group of young men, giving him their full attention. His name was Bruno Alvarado. He pointed to one of his lieutenants, Sergio Gambini, and then pointed to the Stranger.

In short notice, the Gambini fellow was standing in front of the Stranger in the Almond Robe. Sergio was quick and to the point, “Bruno wants to see you.”

The Stranger though short, looked the tall and lean Gambini fellow straight in the eye: “I want to see Bruno.” And he was escorted across the street.

Bruno demanded of the stranger: “What’s your business here?”

The Stranger: “I have a Word from God for you and your associates.”

Bruno, saw no hesitation, no deflection, no sense of concern. No fear, nor worry, nor doubt, nor duplicity. All Bruno felt was the challenge of this Stranger’s presence. Bruno was not in the habit of being challenged, and especially by strangers, especially foreigners, but the whole scenario appealed to Bruno’s curiosity.

The Stranger held Bruno’s gaze unwaveringly waiting patiently for what would happen next. After a long pause Bruno laughed out loud and broke the tension. He guffawed. He let our a belly laugh, a so did all the rest of the men, both young and old. This was something nobody expected, except the Stranger. He was no stranger to the Conflict and Confusion that happens when the messenger of God is about to speak.

When the laughter died down, it was the Stranger who spoke first:

“Do you know the great fighter who ever lived?

This question piqued their interest. Everyone present could feel a shift in this encounter. Something was being stirred up that none of them could explain or identify, but no one answered the question. So the Stranger continued:

“No?” Then, Let me tell you a true story ABOUT HIM. … on one condition.

All the men, seemed to take a step back, psychologically, if not physically. They are were waiting for Bruno’s response. Putting a condition on Bruno was never a good Idea if you truly cared about all your body parts.

But, to everyone’s surprise, Bruno was unmoved. He was staring directly at the Stranger’s eyes, as if to say, you are treading on thin ice. But he let the offense slide in favor of not interrupting the Story, and breaking the spell that was clearly coming over his men, and dare say himself as well.

“Are you ready to hear? If you say yes, then I’m gonna hold you to it. Because at the end of the story I’m gonna ask a you very important question, and I’m gonna need you to answer me truthfully, but you won’t be able to answer rightly, if you don’t listen carefully. So, I’m gonna ask you again one more time: Are you ready to hear? If the answer is yes, then I’ll keep going. If your answer is no, then I’ll stop here, and we’ll call it quits.”

The gangster, and his henchmen, heard the challenge in this man’s voice. They recognized that serious look in his eyes. So they took the challenge. They Manned up. They said would listen carefully, so the man could continue his story.

The Stranger next said:

By the way, Do any of you know about the Blood Covenant of God?

The Stranger could tell a couple of the younger men’s eyes lit up when he mentioned the blood covenant, but they were too concerned about breaking protocol by speaking before being asked to speak.

Then the Stranger said: “We, I figured as much. Seems hardly anybody these days, understands the Blood Covenant of God. Because of that, I will need to start this story with a bit longer introduction, but I guarantee that you will not be disappointed in the results. Are you men ready for the Greatest Story ever Told?

All the men nodded, not sure what else to say, but they all liked a good story. Even Bruno was game. And he was especially curious where this Strange Man was going, and what he was going to do with him in the end.

“Once upon a time, a long time ago, there lived a man who had it all. He had every good thing that a man could have, and he had the most beautiful wife that ever lived (this is absolutely true). He was strong. He was smart. He had the most beautiful body you could ever imagine. Although he was 100 years old, he didn’t look a day older than 21, but then he got into a fight, that turned his life around. 

The Man got into a fight with a liar and a thief, and that liar was able to steal everything the man had, even his good looks, and all he owned. Even his wife’s good looks were stolen at the very same time.

As a couple, they lost everything, they lost their family farm, and their beautiful garden, and everything that came with it. They were swindled by the liar. They didn’t even know it at first, but they gave the liar, who was a thief their most precious possession. Do you know what they got in return?

They got a lie.

When they realized what had happened, it was already too late. They had never met a liar and a thief like this one, and they didn’t realize they had lost every good thing that they ever had, until they had already lost it.

On that very day, a man came to this couple, and he covered them in blood. After that, the man gave them a promise. He said to the miserable couple, that one day a seed from the woman would come. And this Man would buy back the family farm. He would buy back their precious beautiful and perfect garden. He would buy back their land with a beautiful river that flows through it. And on that day everything that they had lost would be restored, but it would come at a terrible price. 

Until that day comes, many hard lessons would need to be learned before they would be ready or willing to accept the work of the Man who would come. And they needed to believe and prepare themselves for the coming of the Man who would ransom not only them, but everything that was lost and stolen.

Only the Man would lose His Life in the conflict. 

The Man would strike the head of the Serpent and would Crush it, but not before the serpent would bite his heal and he would also die. None of this did they completely comprehend at the time, but they did accept the promise, and were covered in the blood of the lamb, that was offered on their behalf. And they did enter into a blood covenant with the Man who covered them in blood.

Eventually the man and the woman got married, and they consecrated their marriage and their sexual union as they became one. As a result, they gave birth to a son, of whom they were very proud. 

But I am sad to tell you, that this little growing family lived in misery, because of the lie they had bought, and the losses that they had sustained. It was a horrible lie, and a horrible loss, but they couldn’t change it now. The only thing they could do was to wait for the promise, that one day the seed of the woman, A Man, would come and buy back everything that was stolen from them.

Their one son grew up. They all thought: he might be the one? He became strong and proud, he worked the land. He brought forth fruit, by the sweat of his brow. He took credit for helping to feed the family.

Then, the man and the woman consecrated their marriage a second time. This time they brought forth another son, he was strong also, but also humble. He was loving and patient, and he took care of the animals of the flock, and he enjoyed their playful nature, and he protected them, and fed them, and nurtured them like they were his own children. He learned much about how to care for people, by learning how to care for animals from the flock.

The parents wondered which son might be the son of the promise …

As it turned out, the oldest son, who is proud and strong, began to be jealous of his younger brother, who was humble and strong and happy all the time, and the older son resented him. The resentment in him was due to a lie, it was part of the same lie that his parents had bought from the liar and the thief. The older son tried to throw off the lie, but he couldn’t on his own. He fought with the lie for a while, but his jealousy, and his resentment just seemed to grow day by day.

At one point, the older son’s jealousy turned to hatred. He couldn’t see that his brother was doing any work at all, and here he was sweating and toiling to bring forth food from the earth, while his brother just sat among the flock and wrote songs. 

That son enjoyed walking the flock from one Field to another to find good food. And he would sing his songs to the flock, as they walked along. He would lead his flocks down the hills to the still Waters, away from the dangerous raging river where some of his wandering sheep in the past had strayed from the flock had fallen in and drowned. 

The younger son led his sheep, to the edge of the still Waters underneath the tall oaks and had his sheep lie down under the shade of the trees during the heat of the day. This gave them a rest and protection from the hot sun.

His older brother felt he needed to work hard to break up more ground and plant more seed by the sweat of his brow, even in the heat of the sun. He was proud and worked his body hard. He was preparing to have a family of his own some day, and wanted to provide enough food for everyone to have more than enough–especially himself, for he loved to eat.

The two young men could be not more different from one another. 

In due time, both sons came and gave an offering to God, the youngest son, gave an offering according to the Blood Covenant that his parents made with God, and he continued in their teaching, trusting in the promise to come. The older brother, brought his offering from the fruit of the ground, as a new tradition, to honor and commemorate all the hard labor and work he had performed.

The younger son’s offering was dramatically accepted by the fire of God. Fire fell from heaven (like during Elijah’s and Solomons’ offerings). The fire consumed the whole offering of the lamb of God, that the younger son prepared according to the promise for the forgiveness of sins that was the central point in the Blood Covenant of God. 

This whole event amazed the older son, and he saw how his younger brother’s offering was accepted. He was excited to see what would happen to his offering. He waited for a while, then a while longer. He waited all morning and then into the afternoon, by evening he gave up waiting, because He realized that his offering had been rejected.

All that night and the next morning, the jealousy and resentment inside his heart turned into red hot blooded anger and hatred. As a result, he entertained thoughts of cold blooded murder. All he could think about was how much he hated his brother and wanted him dead and gone.

The next morning God visited the older brother and told him:

Why are you so angry? Why has your countenance fallen?  If you do well, shall you not be accepted? But if you do not not well, sin is lying at the door like lion ready to pounce on you. It desires to control you, and own you, and to make you its slave. Sin wants to rule over you. You must master it, and rule over it. 

You would think that God coming to the older brother would help lead the brother away from his wicked idea of Sin, and the horrible plan of premeditated murder. Instead, the older brother thought about God’s words for a while, but then he chose to turn his back on God, and do the opposite of what God requested of him. He chose not to master his sin, but to give freedom to his sin. Eventually, he gave free reign to his sin.

The Younger brother was out in the field, leading his flocks back from the still Waters to have their late afternoon feeding. The younger brother was singing and joyful. He was enjoying his time with the sheep most especially that Day, because the God his Father, had come to him, and let him know that they would be have intimate time together very soon.

Mark this down: Death is not a problem when in Covenant with God. It is not a thing to worry about, fear, or get upset about. Death is a glorious graduation, a radical time of transition: from a broken, stained, marred, degraded and corrupted temporary kingdom (that is in full stage rebellion to God everywhere you look), to a fabulous, majestic, indescribably glorious permanent, never ending, eternal Kingdom (That is in full stage agreement with God and His Ways, His Government, His Laws, His Love and His Harmony that fills all in all!!! (That was a long sentence.)

When the older brother went searching his brother, the younger was glad to see him. He had no idea what his older brother was thinking in his heart. He had no idea that anyone would entertain such dark thoughts, and turn their backs on the living God. Such ideas, he wouldn’t even allow into his mind or heart. For be sure of this, the enemy had also come to the younger brother to stir up strife between the two, but the younger brother wasn’t having any of it. And any problem he did experience, he just sorted out with God.

As the older brother arrived, he took charge of the conversation. He told his brother about all his hard work, and all the food that he was growing, and how hard he worked to grow the food, so that his family would have such good things to eat. He kept talking about all his accomplishments, until they came to a place that was between two hills, that was hidden from view. Then, he allowed the younger brother to take a few steps in front of him. That’s when, he picked up a rock, and gathered all the hatred, the anger, jealousy, and the resentment and used it to launch the rock directly at the back of his brothers head. 

The younger brother didn’t even see it coming, and he was dead before his head hit the ground. There was no scream or cry of any kind, just the thud of his head hitting the ground, and pool the blood pouring out from his head and filling the impression around his body.

At first the older brother felt a tinge of remorse. For an instant, he saw how peaceful and kind, gentle and joyful, humble and innocent, his younger brother truly was. But then, the voice returned again, and he despised him even the more. Then he remembered his plan. He was to remove his body into the bushes so nobody would find him. All the while he kept listening to the voice inside his head that said he needed to do all this in order to find peace for himself. It was a lying voice.

Finally, after he had done everything the voice had commanded him to do, he decided to sit down and rest for a moment. He was expecting to find peace, but he found none. His anger, hatred, jealousy, and resentment did go away. But they were replaced by some new friends, the spirits of shame, regret, fear, guilt, and the judgment to come. These filled his whole mind, body, and spirit. Also, he was filled with confusion and instability, leading him to the edge of insanity.  He thought he would be at peace, but he was far from it.

A little later: God found Cain and spoke with him a second time.

And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? 

Cain replied:

I know not: Am I my brother’s keeper? Genesis 4:9 (KJV) 

And God spoke to Cain a third time:

What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground. 11 And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother’s blood from thy hand; 12 When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth. 

Genesis 4:10-12 (KJV) 

That begs the question: How many times has God spoken to us?

Also: How many times has he needed to speak to you on the same issue? How many times will he speak to you and then, let you go your own way? And then, not speak to you any more.

Do you know why Cain was susceptible to the Liar and the Thief, and why Cain turned his back on God, and turned his face towards the Devil, and gave himself into the devil’s plans, in thought, word, and deed? 

Do you know the Liar and the Thief came to Cain’s Parents, and they also, turned their backs on God, and turned their faces towards the Devil, and gave themselves to the devil’s plans in thought, word, and deed?

Did you know that Cain’s children also turned their backs on God, and followed the devil’s plans for their lives in thought word and deed?

Did you know that one lie leads to another lie? One theft leads to another theft? One murder leads to another murder? One act of evil will multiple itself and try and fill the whole earth. (Such is the nature and power of sin.)

Did you know that the all of Adam and Eve’s Children were confronted by the devil one by one, and the majority of them, listened to the devil’s voice, followed the Devil’s plans, and turned the original paradise of God into a Living Hell Hole of Evil, so much so that God was grieved in his heart that he had created man on the earth. 

It was so bad, that God saw in order to save the few (or possibly the one and only) semi-righteous man left on the earth left on the earth, that he knew he must destroy all the generations of man on the earth, except Noah and his family?

Can you imagine how it must have felt, in God’s heart, that he must do this terrible event. God was thinking like a surgeon. Yes, the patient has a terrible cancer, and it is growing rapidly and filling one whole lung, and soon it will grow and multiple rapidly and fill the second lung of the man, unless the doctor takes swift and immediate action. He must remove the infected, corrupted, horrendously aggressive cancer in the one lung to save the patient.

Yet God did not falter. He did not hesitate, in one generation he raised up a man who would listen to his voice, obey his commands, and do His will, exactly as God explained it to the man: Noah, whose name means, “He will bring rest to his people.” 

Noah was a preacher of righteousness, but the people would not listen, so he couldn’t save them, so Noah did the next best thing. Noah saved his own family. Noah became one of God’s Fighters fighting evil with all his mind, and all his might. Noah undertook a truly amazing task: building a ship … so big …

With the help of his sons, it only took Noah 100 years to complete the task of building. Then, God brought in every kind of common animal on the earth at the time, two by two, and every kind of clean animal seven by seven. 

As Noah obeyed God, he became God’s Champion, through whom God saved the human race. Yet, Noah was only a forerunner, a role model, and a prophetic picture that would encourage and strengthen many other men. Noah was a picture of the Conquering King, standing in judgment of All Mankind, and being the Savior to all the Righteous who would forever after listen to, study, and Know the Word of God, on a one to one intimate basis. 

Noah prepared himself to do the work of God 600 years, and then still lived another 350 years, continuing the work he started, proclaiming the ways of Yahweh, but sadly, many still did not listen shortly after the Flood, men quickly again began to to evil.

Another champion of God was born 65 years before Noah died, his name was Abraham, He was known as the Friend of God,  or just God’s Friend, for short. Abraham surely knew the story of Noah and the Flood. It is possible he could have learned it directly from Noah’s own personal testimony. God himself hand picked Abraham to share the clearest picture of the Blood Covenant of God with this man, God promised to bless, increase, and greatly multiple Abraham and his seed–as many as the stars in heaven in number, as many as the grains of sand on the beach (Genesis 15). God loved Abraham and spoke to Him directly, several times, even had dinner fellowship, eating a meal with Abraham, both the day God judged Sodom and Gomorrah. (Genesis 18) because Abraham was a child of God who listened, obeyed, and honored his relationship with God.

Many of God’s champions throughout the generations of man, fulfilled different parts of the Prophetic Promises of God. But none of these were the Greatest of All God’s Warriors, the Greatest of All God’s Champions, the Greatest of All Men who Loved God with All their heart, and who would never stumble, not in the slightest dot or tittle.

All of these earthly born men were imperfect and flawed, and none of them could do the Work of Perfection that God knew needed to be done, in order to buy back the world, and all of creation and everything in it, including the entire Race of Mankind. 

None of these men, born of the seed of Adam, measured up to the task. Yet God had promised, that a time would come, when One Man, born of the seed of the Woman, and born by the Power of God would come, and he would destroy the works of the devil, and take back the throne of the Earth (He would re-establish the Throne of King David), and give it back to the Men of the Earth, and thus would redeem all mankind that would accept his law and his authority and his government in their lives. Those who would not would be rejected, just as Cain’s offering would be rejected. Those who would receive his government and joyfully accept his authority and his laws, would be accepted, just as his blessed son Abel was accepted by God and blessed by God, obeying God and becoming the first sacrificial child of God to declare. 

Make a note here. Abel was also a forerunner, and a prophetic picture of the Redeemer of all Mankind who was promised to come. Able was a picture of The Suffering Servant of God, who laid down His Life for the Sheep. Who, though he had done no wrong, he was judged by man’s jealousy. He was accepted by God, but rejected by man. He was condemned to die not by any wrong done, or any wrong in himself, but by man’s hatred, even by the devil’s lies, his was killed, even by his own brother who became a slave to the enemy’s work.

This brother who was rejected by God. He did not walk in the Truth, and did not have the Love of God in his heart. Instead, he intentionally and defiantly, and violently rejected the Truth of God, and sold himself to do evil, through but only the lies, the hatred, and jealousy of the devil. His brother carried out the vile nature and evil of the devil, in he is heart, who was a liar, a thief, and a murderer from the Beginning.

This echoes the prophecy of Jesus, the Messiah: 

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. 13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Matthew 5:10-13 (KJV) 

. his special status of acceptance by God, when men knew they were rejected by God, and this reproduced the hatred of  the enemy who hated God’s ways and his government so much, he killed the one man on earth that was undefiled by his wickedness, and unreachable due to his holy and pure relationship of acceptance with God. 

In other words, Abel’s Love for God made him untouchable. Abel was undefiled by the hand, the lies, and the wickedness, and temptations of the Enemy. Because Abel had entered into a Blood Covenant of God, with God being the senior partner of Abel’s Covenant. God’s allowed Abel to be taken out, and so Abel could be Near to God, and living in His Presence. And also, Abel would be the first Man proclaiming by his life the Glory and Power of God

of God and God’s ways,